LANSING, MI - Universities including Saginaw Valley State University and the University of Michigan-Flint would do best on a percentage basis under a performance funding formula plan advancing in the Michigan Legislature.

Universities that don’t do as well under the plan to distribute an additional $36 million in state funding include Wayne State University, Michigan State University and the University of Michigan-Ann Arbor.

The plan was approved Friday by a Republican-led conference committee including several members of the House and Senate. The measure is expected to be included in a vote on the House floor later in the day, and the Senate could vote on the plan Tuesday.

Republicans who hold the majority in the state Legislature plan to distribute the $36 million in additional state aid to the universities in the fiscal year that begins Oct. 1. On average, it could provide roughly a 3 percent boost in state aid to universities. But the amount would vary by institution. Excluding the tuition factor, the performance boosts would result in increases ranging from above 8 percent for Saginaw Valley to less than 1 percent for Wayne State.

The additional money would be distributed based on a formula that includes graduation rates, research spending and degrees granted in certain skill areas. Universities also could get a slice of the additional money by keeping tuition increases at or below 4 percent.

The additional money is part of an overall higher education budget that approaches $1.4 billion.

Sen. Tonya Schuitmaker, a Republican from Van Buren County's Antwerp Township, said the distribution method and the boost in funding take higher education funding "in a new direction."

Rep. Joan Bauer, D-Lansing, opposed parts of the plan and said it was being rushed through the Legislature.

Some universities feel the plan penalizes them for performing well already and for awarding a higher percentage of graduate degrees than other institutions.

The proposal includes language that the Legislature's intent is for universities doing embryonic stem cell research to file reports with the state.

The overall education funding plan aims to increase funding for K-12 schools at or near the bottom of Michigan’s funding scale. Community colleges on average would get a state aid boost of roughly 3 percent.